Giving out cultural grants should change, an economist believes

Prague - The method of awarding cultural grants by the Prague city hall should be changed, believes economist Miroslav Ševčík. The current cultural and grant policy of the city was developed after criticism from part of the representatives of the Prague cultural community two years ago. Ševčík was in the working group that created it. This year, the method of awarding grants is the target of representatives from other cultural institutions. However, the arguments sound similar, mainly opacity, injustice, and personal connections.
    Two years ago, artists who joined the Initiative for Culture opposed the method of awarding grants. "It turns out that there is not only the Initiative for Culture, but also others," Ševčík told the Czech News Agency at today’s meeting with Councilor Milan Richter (ODS) and representatives of the cultural scene. According to the economist, it is impossible to please everyone.
    "I have always said that the material is open and needs to be worked on," Ševčík noted regarding the documents on the cultural and grant policy of Prague. When grant commissions evaluate projects, subjective factors always come into play according to him. Furthermore, the commission consists mostly of people promoted by the Initiative for Culture.
    "Initially, we counted on changing the composition of the commission," said Ševčík. It was supposed to change one-third of the people representing the cultural community each year. Besides them, there are also councilors and city officials in the commission.
    From the current perspective, the best proposal seems to be that of Tomáš Töpfer, the director of the Divadlo Fidlovačka and senator, who stated that funds should be allocated based on theater attendance, and thus success. "There are fields where the application of the proposal would be problematic," the economist admitted. It could be applied in the case of theaters or concerts, but would be more complex with exhibitions. However, even in this area it could be introduced. The proposal would ensure genre diversity in the cultural scene, Ševčík believes.
    Councilor Richter promises a change in grant rules, stating that this year’s allocation of funds is not entirely fair. A seminar on this topic should be held soon.
    According to some observers, it would be economically most just not to give any subsidies. However, this would reportedly be politically unfeasible, as the entire Prague cultural scene would demonstrate in front of the city hall.